A green, white and gold rescue helicopter whipped up a cloud of dust east of Palm Springs on Wednesday, lowering itself toward a popular canyon hike near Coachella. Minutes later, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office aviation unit’s helicopter took off with two people, after one person in a family party experienced a medical emergency. The helicopter then returned to gather the other family members, depositing them on a nearby road with medical personnel waiting.
The hiker rescue occurred during the hottest part of the day in the rugged Mecca Hills area south of Joshua Tree National Park and north of the Salton Sea. With temperatures reaching 109 degrees, an unidentified male — part of a larger group of hikers — on the well-known Ladder Canyon Trail began to feel faint and needed medical attention, per local news outlet KESQ-TV. The area is remote, difficult to get to and can be technically challenging, which led rescuers to rely on a helicopter for extraction.
Two adults and three minors were ultimately pulled from the canyon. In a statement to SFGATE, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said: “On August 28, 2024, at 12:42 p.m., deputies were dispatched to the area of Painted Canyon Road and Box Canyon Road regarding a hiker feeling faint during a family hike. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office helicopter located them and airlifted them to their vehicle. No one was transported to the hospital by our department as a result of this incident.
Every year, countless hikers traverse the tight canyons and sandy washes of the Painted Canyon area and adjacent Ladder Canyon hike. The area is easily accessible for tourists and locals alike in the greater Palm Springs area, though the rugged road to the trailhead and multiple ladder and rope traverses can make for an unexpectedly difficult time for some less-prepared hikers.
Rescues are occasionally needed in the area, including one earlier this summer in June, when a pair of hikers, one “dehydrated and weak,” needed similar assistance from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office aviation unit.